Women of AT&T Conference Inspires Girls to Pursue STEM Careers

About 100 students from Cutler Bay Middle School, Homestead Middle School and North Miami Middle School got a taste of what it would be like to have a STEM (science-technology-engineering-math) career, thanks to the Florida Chapter of Women of AT&T (WOA-FL).

WOA-FL, a nonprofit, held the STEM: It’s Your Moment conference in Miami, with the goal of inspiring students, especially females, to pursue an education and career in one of the STEM fields. According to the Smithsonian Science Education Center, 2.4 million jobs in the STEM fields went unfilled in the U.S. last year, and minorities and women are deeply underrepresented.

Students attending the WOA STEM conference heard from a cyber security professional, network equipment design engineers, and an expert on Smart Cities. The students also created “squishy electric circuits” using play dough to light-up sculptures.

According to the Education Commission of the States, STEM jobs are expected to grow 13% between 2017 and 2027, compared to 9 percent for non-STEM jobs, with positions in computing, engineering and advanced manufacturing leading the way.

With over 25,000 members in 40 chapters, WOA is the largest Employee Resource Group at AT&T. WOA aims to promote an environment that recognizes the value of women's contributions both inside and outside AT&T, with volunteerism acting as a key pillar.